Leopard Found Dead

13.01.2012

The remains of the leopard named Uzor (Pattern) by Russian conservationists were found on December 31, 2011 when the protected area law enforcement personnel were on routine patrolling in Leopardovy Wildlife Refuge, the Russian Far East. The animal was fitted with a satellite-tracking collar in September 2011 by researchers of the A.N Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences as part of their study of the endangered and elusive leopards. It was a male leopard aged approximately 5-6 years (body length of 126 cm, tail of 88 cm, and pad width of 6.5 cm).

A panel of three veterinary doctors performed the postmortem at Primorsky State Agricultural Academy on January 10, 2012, but could not ascertain the exact cause of death because all internal organs of the animal were missing. According to the doctors, there were a lot of sings on the animal’s body, such as soft-tissue and hard-tissue injuries at the base of the skull and neck, showing that it might have met a violent death. Moreover, there were four 0.5cm x 0.6cm round wounds on its cheekbone. Unfortunately, it was impossible to identify a real cause of those wounds. No evidence suggesting gun shots was found during the autopsy. Fragments of tissue with round wounds were forwarded for further examination.